Trafigura CEO ‘not particularly concerned’ about Europe's reliance on US LNG

The head of Trafigura said he is not worried about Europe's growing dependence on US LNG because of buyers' flexibility to source from elsewhere, if needed.

"I'm not particularly concerned about that issue of overreliance on the US," Richard Holtum told the LNG2026 conference in Doha Feb. 4.

Holtum stressed that contracts with US LNG producers are typically on an FOB basis, so "you can take it anywhere."

"It is not, I would say, that Europe is dependent on US LNG," Holtum said. "It's that Europe is dependent on LNG, and today the most efficient supplier is the US."

If needed, the continent could secure cargoes from other producers, supported by the array of import facilities developed in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, he said.

"Now that the premium has been paid in terms of the infrastructure [in Europe], you can take LNG from anywhere in the world," he said.

Risk of 'a mistake'

Other European participants, however, expressed caution about the growing EU-US linkage.

"That is a mistake Europe should not repeat to depend too much on one region," SEFE CEO Egbert Laege said at the Doha conference Feb. 4. "The US is not the only country -- the only region which is available for long-term contracts."

Qatar could be a viable source of LNG for markets beyond Northwest Europe, MET Group CEO Huibert Vigeveno said Feb. 4 at the Doha gathering.

"If you look at South Europe, you look at Central and Eastern Europe, I think there's more possibilities to work together -- for instance, with Qatar, which would be, I think, many opportunities there," he said.

European officials signal increasing wariness over the continent's reliance on US LNG, particularly after recent tensions over US President Donald Trump's push to acquire Greenland.

The US is the EU's largest LNG supplier, providing about 57% of its imports in 2025, according to data from S&P Global Energy CERA. The year was also the first on record in which the EU sourced over 50% of its LNG from one country.

Platts, part of S&P Global Energy, assessed the DES Northwest Europe LNG marker at $10.37/MMBtu Feb. 3, down 2.66% day over day.